The present invention relates to an apparatus for carbonating beverage liquids, and in particular an apparatus that may easily be carried directly to party goers for carbonating drinks at their table or where they stand.
Carbonization of fluids for making drinks more interesting and palatable has been done for centuries. Early processes involving natural fermentation to generate carbon dioxide gas (CO.sub.2) had closed casks to ensure high pressures. More recent commercial processes use cylinders of high pressure CO.sub.2 and a variety of means for getting the gas in contact with the liquid where it is dissolved. A great many designs for carbonating equipment have been generated over the years.
Known smaller versions for domestic use allow carbonating of single to a few servings utilizing common plastic bottles. Two examples out of many are shown by U.S. Pat. No. 4,927,569 issued to Robinson in 1990, and by U.S. Pat. No. 4,999,140 issued to Sutherland et al in 1991. All have limits by reason of needing a capped drink bottle which can waste time attaching the bottle to the carbonator. Robinson's, Sutherland's and all other known carbonators for multiple servings are not truly portable, and certainly cannot be shaken, in that they need to be bench supported due to shape, weight, or bottle attachment method. The drink must be brought to the carbonating rig and several separate applications of CO.sub.2 must be made to get full carbonization. Other small versions use nonreusable CO2 cartridges which are totally unacceptable because throw-away canisters contribute excessively to the solid waste stream. Existing carbonators require that the bottle be held against supply pressure manually or with an over reaching body enclosure, not as in the present invention where a mechanically advantaged clamp simply and quickly allows a firm connection easily controlled by an operator's hand while shaking the drink to promote a high degree of carbonization in a single application.